Joseph Beuys : Multiples This is the largest exhibition yet seen in Ireland of the work of the legendary German artist Joseph Beuys and is one of the most important exhibitions of his 'Multiples' ever organised. Multiples, or works produced in editions, represented for Beuys a vehicle for communication and a means of spreading his ideas far beyond his own range, thus encouraging discussion and debate even beyond his own Lifetime. From 1965 to 1985, Beuys produced almost 6oo Multiples in a variety of media, 450 of which are now in the collection of the Walker Center in Minneapolis. Joseph Beuys: Multiples is drawn primarily from the Alfred and Marie Greisinjer Collection of Multiples, which was acquired by the Walker in 1992. Some 300 of these works will be on view at the Museum. The exhibition, which is also travelling to the joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, the Barbican Art Gallery, London, and the San Jose Museum of Art, makes clear the relationship between the Multiples and Beuys' larger body of work and ideas. It is curated by Joan Rothfuss, a Walker Associate. The show demonstrates Beuys' belief in the unity of art and life and of his confidence in the viewer's ability to understand and relate to his work. The Multiples, seemingly straightforward objects, function as carriers for varied meanings and ideas. This exhibition concentrates on objects incorporating felt (the artist's signature material), containers, printed-matter, postcards and video, and includes well known pieces such as Sled (1969), Noiseless Blackboard (a ready-made in the Duchampian sense) and Felt Suit (1970). Joseph Beuys was born in 1921 and was raised in Kleve, Germany, until 1930. He returned in 1946 after the war, in which his experiences in battle were to prove a dramatic influence on his life and art. He died in 1986.